Israel’s March base oil imports stay low

Israel’s base oil imports edged back up in March but remained much lower than recent levels.

The trend reflected signs of a structural change in requirements following the recent implementation of taxes on base oil and lubricant imports.

Imports of 12,290 kilolitres (10,890t) in March rose from a nearly-four-year-low of 4,720kl the previous month, government data showed. But the volume was still almost 60pc down from year-earlier levels.

Total imports of 28,430kl in the first three months of the year fell by 60pc from year-earlier levels to the lowest since 2018.

Imports had risen in the interim partly because of the closure of Israel’s sole base oil unit. Plans to implement taxes on base oil and lube imports were also repeatedly postponed during that period.

The imposition of those taxes was approved late last year.

Israel had previously attracted large volumes of supplies from sources like South Korea, UAE and US. Shipments from those markets have instead fallen sharply in recent months.

Supplies from Europe now accounted for a growing share of Israel’s imports.

The March volume included more than 4,000t of Group I supplies from Greece. The volume was the second-highest from the Mediterranean country in more than four years.

Israel also took delivery of some 1,500t of base oils from India in March. The volume was up from typical levels of less than 500 t/month.

The discount of base oil prices in India to prices in Europe has widened sharply in recent months.